The Moonlight Hero

Chapter One: Awakening

"Again," my teacher said. I coughed and got back up to my feet. It's been a year. A full year since I started learning martial arts. And I'm still a lowly green belt in all of my studies. I sank into a defensive stance. My teacher swiftly kicked upward, and I dodged backwards. But it didn't matter. I still ended up on my back after a second kick. I sprung up, this time on the offensive. I kicked twice, and then dodged back after one kick from my teacher. I repeated again, and ended up on my face. 

"That's one thing you might have on me, Artemis," my teacher said, "Your stamina and your quick thinking are great, but you are too slow." 

I gritted my teeth, and sprung back up, kicking as I flew upwards. My teacher grabbed my foot and tried to throw me down. His side was unprotected. I used the momentum he used to attempt to throw me down to shoot backwards. I wrapped my free leg around his body and twisted. He lost his balance. I let go to avoid going down with him. I let go too early. He bounced off of his hands and flipped to face me. In the blink of an eye, I was on my back again. My teacher turned his back. "That's enough for now. Go take a lunch break," my teacher said as he walked towards the staff room. I sprung up once more, a pain in my side from where he kicked me. "Lunch? It's only eleven!" I exclaimed. I needed to get stronger. He chuckled. "Exactly. Meet me back on the mat at two. We'll train more then," he replied. He disappeared into the staff room. I went into the locker room to change. I was hungry, maybe that's why I couldn't beat him. 

After lunch, I came back to the training facility. I went into the weight room, and after seeing who was in there, I instantly regretted it.

"Hey, guys! It's Little Arty!" A boy called out. His name was Ken. The group around him cracked up laughing. I sat down on a bench press. "Shut up," I muttered.  Ken was immediately in my face. "The heck you say to me, little shrimp?" he asked in a low, menacing tone. "Nothing," I replied. Ken slapped me across the face. "Don't lie to me! If I ever catch you bad mouthing me again, then next sparring match won't be very fun for you," he said. He got up and walked back over to his group of friends. I could hear them shooting jokes at me. Hypocrites... I thought as I put weights on the barbell. 

Two hours later, I was back on the mat with my teacher. I'd just finished reading studies on Kyokushin Karate, so I figured I might as well try them. "Let's see how you do this time, Artemis," he said. I immediately lunged forward. He lashed out with a fast punch, but I ducked to the right and dodged it. I landed a solid punch in on his stomach, and he lost his footing. I whipped around him and kicked upwards, connecting with the back of his head. I then switched my footing and kicked again, and landed a hit on his neck. I pulled my leg back and sent a full force punch toward his shoulder. Without warning, he whipped around and grabbed my arm, flinging me far over his head. I hit the wall and collapsed. I'd never known this kind of force before. I was extremely dizzy, but I still managed to get up. Ken's buddies were laughing, but Ken wasn't laughing to make fun of me. It was more of a nervous laugh. My mind was sent in a dizzy blur, and all of a sudden, it was quiet. I couldn't hear them laughing anymore. I finally came to, and what I saw before me was terrifying. My teacher was on the ground, unconscious. Ken stared at me. 

"What the heck did you do?" he yelled, getting up from his seat. His friends were frozen in their seats, terrified. I shook my head frantically. "I have no idea!" I stuttered. Ken lunged at me, and I swiftly dodged. He slammed into a metal bar blocking off the other side of the training facility, which was under renovation. It was now that I saw the aftermath of my slamming into the wall. A large, circular section of the wall was cracked. You could see the metal supports behind the section, one of them slightly bent. Ken got up, wiping the blood from his nose. He picked up a piece of metal piping and turned towards me. "You're gonna pay for this!" he yelled, pointing at his nose. Instinctively, I dodge his usual right swing, and hit him in his jaw. He was sent flying upwards. I jump to the wall, and leap towards Ken. I kick the metal bar out of his hands and then kick him downwards in one fluid motion. He hits the mat hard. Ken is unconscious. One of his friends came back with a teacher. The teacher leaps onto the mat. I land on the mat, and stay there. The teacher checks my teacher's pulse. He looks up. "He's alive, just over exerted," he says in a monotonous voice, "Come with me." He picks up my teacher and brings him to the infirmary. Ken begins to come to. I quickly catch up to the teacher.

In a few hours, my teacher awakes.

"Artemis?" he asked. I nod. "I'm here," I say quietly. I supposed that I was going to get in a lot of trouble for this. My teacher sits up a little more. "How did you do that?" he asks. I shake my head. "No idea. I mean, after a short workout I watched some videos and finished a book on Kyokushin Karate, but it was completely new material to me! It's impossible that I learnt it in that short of time!" I exclaimed. My teacher shook his head. "What you just did were some of the exact moves I used at the world championships. Did you watch that video?" he asked. I nodded. He sighed. "Call in the Grandmaster. He'll be in his office," my teacher said. I nodded.

"Mr. Grandmaster?" I called. His office was like a lavish penthouse: tall, glass ceilings, trees, and even a small waterfall. "Come in," A deep, gravelly voice said from the other side of the room. I navigated through the pillars and trees and came to a circular desk. Sitting in the middle was an old man with streaks of silver in his dark black hair, wearing black robes: the Grandmaster. "Sir, my teacher would like to speak with you. He's in the infirmary," I said. The Grandmaster paused for a moment before turning around. I'd never seen the Grandmaster's face before. He had tan skin, but his eyes were the most interesting: One eye was a deep blue, with a crimson lining on the inside edge of the iris. His other eye was a grayish color. But, at a second glance, it was a clock; the hands and roman numerals difficult to see against their gray background. "I will head down right away," he replied. I bowed, and left the room.

When I turned the corner and entered the infirmary, I couldn't believe what I saw. The Grandmaster had managed to make it there before me, even though he left later than me!

Both adults turned towards me. Grandmaster's eyebrows were furrowed. "Sit, young Artemis. It's time for you to learn the truth," he said softly. I glanced nervously between my teacher and the Grandmaster. I slowly sat. Grandmaster turned towards me. He shifted a little, and the door closed. 

"I assume you are aware of the strange crimes happening around town, right? I'm sorry to hear that your parents were involved in one of those many accidents," the Grandmaster said. I nodded silently. He sighed. "I reviewed the security tape of the fight between you and your teacher here. I also watched the video of his world championship match. They are identical, except you have only been here for a year, and he's been doing martial arts since he was five. What's more, your's carried far more power than most black belts can achieve in their lifetime," the Grandmaster explained. I sat in silent awe, my eyes wide. "But, Sir, that can't be possible. I saw that video only hours ago, and it's impossible to replicate exact moves like those in the video!" I exclaimed. The Grandmaster nodded. "Impossible for ordinary people that might've even been practicing their entire life. But not for certain people," the Grandmaster said. I shook my head in disbelief. "I dont have a power, I swear!" I exclaim. The Grandmaster smiled faintly. "Oh, but I think you do. I'm not going to report you. You aren't the type of person that would commit a crime. In fact, I think that I'm going to do the exact opposite. Saikyuu, you've done an excellent job training this child. But, his powers cannot be trained here and further. I will train him personally," the Grandmaster said. Saikyuu nodded, and winked at me. The Grandmaster held out his hand. "Shall we?"